Camera: Fujifilm FinePix S100FS     Exposure: 1/300s   f4.7/63mm     Date: 28.05.2014

Scarce Swallowtail on a lavender branch, Mérindol, Southern France

A beautiful Scarce Swallowtail (iphiclides podalirius), most likely a female of the feisthamelii subspecies, sits on a branch of lavender. While it is strongly endangered in most parts of Central Europe because of habitat loss, it can still be found in large numbers along the French Mediterranean coast and its hinterland.